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Henry Thomas Smart

1813 - 1879 Person Name: Henry Smart Composer of "SUNDERLAND" in The Children's Hymn Book Henry Smart (b. Marylebone, London, England, 1813; d. Hampstead, London, 1879), a capable composer of church music who wrote some very fine hymn tunes (REGENT SQUARE, 354, is the best-known). Smart gave up a career in the legal profession for one in music. Although largely self taught, he became proficient in organ playing and composition, and he was a music teacher and critic. Organist in a number of London churches, including St. Luke's, Old Street (1844-1864), and St. Pancras (1864-1869), Smart was famous for his extemporizations and for his accompaniment of congregational singing. He became completely blind at the age of fifty-two, but his remarkable memory enabled him to continue playing the organ. Fascinated by organs as a youth, Smart designed organs for important places such as St. Andrew Hall in Glasgow and the Town Hall in Leeds. He composed an opera, oratorios, part-songs, some instrumental music, and many hymn tunes, as well as a large number of works for organ and choir. He edited the Choralebook (1858), the English Presbyterian Psalms and Hymns for Divine Worship (1867), and the Scottish Presbyterian Hymnal (1875). Some of his hymn tunes were first published in Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861). Bert Polman

Hans G. Nägeli

1773 - 1836 Person Name: H. G. Nageli Composer of "DENNIS" in Gold Tried in the Fire Johann G. Nageli (b. Wetzikon, near Zurich, Switzerland, 1773; d. Wetzikon, 1836) was an influential music educator who lectured throughout Germany and France. Influenced by Johann Pestalozzi, he published his theories of music education in Gangbildungslehre (1810), a book that made a strong impact on Lowell Mason. Nageli composed mainly" choral works, including settings of Goethe's poetry. He received his early instruction from his father, then in Zurich, where he concentrated on the music of. S. Bach. In Zurich, he also established a lending library and a publishing house, which published first editions of Beethoven’s piano sonatas and music by Bach, Handel, and Frescobaldi. Bert Polman

Charles Wesley

1707 - 1788 Author of "A Charge to Keep I Have" in The United Methodist Hymnal Charles Wesley, M.A. was the great hymn-writer of the Wesley family, perhaps, taking quantity and quality into consideration, the great hymn-writer of all ages. Charles Wesley was the youngest son and 18th child of Samuel and Susanna Wesley, and was born at Epworth Rectory, Dec. 18, 1707. In 1716 he went to Westminster School, being provided with a home and board by his elder brother Samuel, then usher at the school, until 1721, when he was elected King's Scholar, and as such received his board and education free. In 1726 Charles Wesley was elected to a Westminster studentship at Christ Church, Oxford, where he took his degree in 1729, and became a college tutor. In the early part of the same year his religious impressions were much deepened, and he became one of the first band of "Oxford Methodists." In 1735 he went with his brother John to Georgia, as secretary to General Oglethorpe, having before he set out received Deacon's and Priest's Orders on two successive Sundays. His stay in Georgia was very short; he returned to England in 1736, and in 1737 came under the influence of Count Zinzendorf and the Moravians, especially of that remarkable man who had so large a share in moulding John Wesley's career, Peter Bonier, and also of a Mr. Bray, a brazier in Little Britain. On Whitsunday, 1737, [sic. 1738] he "found rest to his soul," and in 1738 he became curate to his friend, Mr. Stonehouse, Vicar of Islington, but the opposition of the churchwardens was so great that the Vicar consented that he "should preach in his church no more." Henceforth his work was identified with that of his brother John, and he became an indefatigable itinerant and field preacher. On April 8, 1749, he married Miss Sarah Gwynne. His marriage, unlike that of his brother John, was a most happy one; his wife was accustomed to accompany him on his evangelistic journeys, which were as frequent as ever until the year 1756," when he ceased to itinerate, and mainly devoted himself to the care of the Societies in London and Bristol. Bristol was his headquarters until 1771, when he removed with his family to London, and, besides attending to the Societies, devoted himself much, as he had done in his youth, to the spiritual care of prisoners in Newgate. He had long been troubled about the relations of Methodism to the Church of England, and strongly disapproved of his brother John's "ordinations." Wesley-like, he expressed his disapproval in the most outspoken fashion, but, as in the case of Samuel at an earlier period, the differences between the brothers never led to a breach of friendship. He died in London, March 29, 1788, and was buried in Marylebone churchyard. His brother John was deeply grieved because he would not consent to be interred in the burial-ground of the City Road Chapel, where he had prepared a grave for himself, but Charles said, "I have lived, and I die, in the Communion of the Church of England, and I will be buried in the yard of my parish church." Eight clergymen of the Church of England bore his pall. He had a large family, four of whom survived him; three sons, who all became distinguished in the musical world, and one daughter, who inherited some of her father's poetical genius. The widow and orphans were treated with the greatest kindness and generosity by John Wesley. As a hymn-writer Charles Wesley was unique. He is said to have written no less than 6500 hymns, and though, of course, in so vast a number some are of unequal merit, it is perfectly marvellous how many there are which rise to the highest degree of excellence. His feelings on every occasion of importance, whether private or public, found their best expression in a hymn. His own conversion, his own marriage, the earthquake panic, the rumours of an invasion from France, the defeat of Prince Charles Edward at Culloden, the Gordon riots, every Festival of the Christian Church, every doctrine of the Christian Faith, striking scenes in Scripture history, striking scenes which came within his own view, the deaths of friends as they passed away, one by one, before him, all furnished occasions for the exercise of his divine gift. Nor must we forget his hymns for little children, a branch of sacred poetry in which the mantle of Dr. Watts seems to have fallen upon him. It would be simply impossible within our space to enumerate even those of the hymns which have become really classical. The saying that a really good hymn is as rare an appearance as that of a comet is falsified by the work of Charles Wesley; for hymns, which are really good in every respect, flowed from his pen in quick succession, and death alone stopped the course of the perennial stream. It has been the common practice, however for a hundred years or more to ascribe all translations from the German to John Wesley, as he only of the two brothers knew that language; and to assign to Charles Wesley all the original hymns except such as are traceable to John Wesley through his Journals and other works. The list of 482 original hymns by John and Charles Wesley listed in this Dictionary of Hymnology have formed an important part of Methodist hymnody and show the enormous influence of the Wesleys on the English hymnody of the nineteenth century. -- Excerpts from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ================== Charles Wesley, the son of Samuel Wesley, was born at Epworth, Dec. 18, 1707. He was educated at Westminster School and afterwards at Christ Church, Oxford, where he graduated M.A. In 1735, he took Orders and immediately proceeded with his brother John to Georgia, both being employed as missionaries of the S.P.G. He returned to England in 1736. For many years he engaged with his brother in preaching the Gospel. He died March 29, 1788. To Charles Wesley has been justly assigned the appellation of the "Bard of Methodism." His prominence in hymn writing may be judged from the fact that in the "Wesleyan Hymn Book," 623 of the 770 hymns were written by him; and he published more than thirty poetical works, written either by himself alone, or in conjunction with his brother. The number of his separate hymns is at least five thousand. --Annotations of the Hymnal, Charles Hutchins, M.A., 1872.

George Frideric Handel

1685 - 1759 Person Name: George Friedrich Händel, 1685-1759 Composer (attributed to) of "ST. THOMAS" in Hymnal and Liturgies of the Moravian Church George Frideric Handel (b. Halle, Germany, 1685; d. London, England, 1759) became a musician and composer despite objections from his father, who wanted him to become a lawyer. Handel studied music with Zachau, organist at the Halle Cathedral, and became an accomplished violinist and keyboard performer. He traveled and studied in Italy for some time and then settled permanently in England in 1713. Although he wrote a large number of instrumental works, he is known mainly for his Italian operas, oratorios (including Messiah, 1741), various anthems for church and royal festivities, and organ concertos, which he interpolated into his oratorio performances. He composed only three hymn tunes, one of which (GOPSAL) still appears in some modern hymnals. A number of hymnal editors, including Lowell Mason, took themes from some of Handel's oratorios and turned them into hymn tunes; ANTIOCH is one example, long associated with “Joy to the World.” Bert Polman

Henry J. Gauntlett

1805 - 1876 Composer of "ST. GEORGE GAUNTLETT" in Hymns and Psalms Henry J. Gauntlett (b. Wellington, Shropshire, July 9, 1805; d. London, England, February 21, 1876) When he was nine years old, Henry John Gauntlett (b. Wellington, Shropshire, England, 1805; d. Kensington, London, England, 1876) became organist at his father's church in Olney, Buckinghamshire. At his father's insistence he studied law, practicing it until 1844, after which he chose to devote the rest of his life to music. He was an organist in various churches in the London area and became an important figure in the history of British pipe organs. A designer of organs for William Hill's company, Gauntlett extended the organ pedal range and in 1851 took out a patent on electric action for organs. Felix Mendelssohn chose him to play the organ part at the first performance of Elijah in Birmingham, England, in 1846. Gauntlett is said to have composed some ten thousand hymn tunes, most of which have been forgotten. Also a supporter of the use of plainchant in the church, Gauntlett published the Gregorian Hymnal of Matins and Evensong (1844). Bert Polman

William Williams

1717 - 1791 Person Name: Williams Composer of "ST. THOMAS" in Notes of Triumph William Williams, called the "Watts of Wales," was born in 1717, at Cefn-y-coed, near Llandovery, Carmarthenshire. He originally studied medicine, but abandoned it for theology. He was ordained Deacon in the Church of England, but was refused Priest's Orders, and subsequently attached himself to the Calvinistic Methodists. For half a century he travelled in Wales, preaching the Gospel. He died in 1791. Williams composed his hymns chiefly in the Welsh language; they are still largely used by various religious bodies in the principality. Many of his hymns have appeared in English, and have been collected and published by Sedgwick. His two principal poetical works are "Hosannah to the Son of David," and "Gloria in Excelsis." --Annotations of the Hymnal, Charles Hutchins, M.A. 1872. ===================== Williams, William, of Pantycelyn, was the Sweet Singer of Wales. He was born at Cefn-y-Coed, in the Parish of Llanfair-y-bryn, near Llandovery, in 1717. He was ordained a deacon of the Established Church in 1740, by Dr. Claget, Bishop of St. Davids, and for three years he served the Curacies of Llan-wrtyd and Llanddewi-Abergwesyn. He never received Priest's Orders. He became early acquainted with the revivalist Daniel Rowlands, and for thirty-five years he preached once a month at Llanllian and Caio and Llansawel, besides the preaching journeys he took in North and South Wales. He was held in great esteem as a preacher. In 1744 his first book of hymns appeared under the title of Halleluiah, and soon ran through three editions. In1762, he published another book under the title of Y Môr o Wydr, which soon went through five editions. His son John published an excellent edition of his hymns in the year 181lines In addition to his Welsh hymns Williams also published several in English as:— (1.) Hosannah to the Son of David; or, Hymns of Praise to God, For our glorious Redemption by Christ. Some few translated from the Welsh Hymn-Book, but mostly composed on new Subjects. By William Williams. Bristol: Printed by John Grabham, in Narrow-Wine Street, 1759. This contains 51 hymns of which 11 are translated from his Welsh hymns. This little book was reprinted by D. Sedgwick in 1859. (2.) Gloria in Excelsis: or, Hymns of Praise to God and the Lamb. By W. Williams . . . Carmarthen. Printed for the Author by John Ross, removed to Priory Street, near the Church, M.DCC.LXXI. This contains 70 hymns, not including parts. From these volumes the following hymns are in common use:— i. From the Hosannah, 1759:— 1. Jesus, my Saviour is enough. Jesus, All in All. 2. My God, my God, Who art my all. Communion with God desired. 3. The enormous load of human guilt. God's love unspeakable. ii. From the Gloria in Excelsis, 1772. 4. Awake, my soul, and rise. Passiontide. 5. Beneath Thy Cross I lay me down. Passiontide. 6. Hark! the voice of my Beloved. The Voice of Jesus. 7. Jesus, lead us with Thy power. Divine Guidance Desired. Sometimes given as "Father, lead us with Thy power." 8. Jesus, Whose Almighty sceptre. Jesus as King. 9. Saviour, look on Thy beloved. The Help of Jesus desired. 10. White and ruddy is my Beloved. Beauties of Jesus. Williams is most widely known through his two hymns, "Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah," and "O'er those gloomy hills of darkness." Williams died at Pantycelyn, Jan. 11, 1791. [Rev. W. Glanffrwd Thomas] -- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) ================= See also in: Hymn Writers of the Church

Charles Edward Pollock

1853 - 1928 Person Name: Chas. Edw. Pollock Composer of "MILDRED" in Kindly Light Charles Edward Pollock USA 1853-1928. Born at Newcastle, PA, he moved to Jefferson City, MO, when age 17. He was a cane maker for C W Allen. He also worked 20 years for the MO Pacific Railroad, as a depot clerk and later as Assistant Roadmaster. He was a musician and prolific songwriter, composing 5000+ songs, mostly used in Sunday school settings and church settings. He took little remuneration for his compositions, preferring they be freely used. He produced three songbooks: “Praises”, “Beauty of praise”, and “Waves of melody”. In 1886 he married Martha (Mattie) Jane Harris, and they had three children: Robert, Edward, and a daughter. He died in Merriam, KS. John Perry ================= Pollock, Charles Edward. (Jefferson City, Missouri, 1853-1924). Records of Jefferson City indicate the following: 1897 clerk at depot; residence at 106 Broadway (with Mildred Pollock) 1904-1905 cane maker for C. W. Allen 1908-1909 musician; residence at 106 Broadway (with wife Matty) 1912-1913 residence at St. Louis Road, east city limits --Wilmer Swope, DNAH Archives Note: not to be confused with Charles Edward Pollock (c.1871-1924).

George Kingsley

1811 - 1884 Composer of "FERGUSON" in Church Hymnal, Mennonite Born: July 7, 1811, Northampton, Massachusetts. Died: March 14, 1884, Northampton, Massachusetts. Kingsley played the organ at the Old South Church and Hollis Street Church in Boston, Massachusetts. He also taught music at Girard College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, served as music supervisor for public schools in Philadelphia, and compiled a number of music books, including: Sunday School Singing Book, 1832 The Harmonist, 1833 The Social Choir, 1836 The Sacred Choir, 1838 The Harp of David, 1844 The Young Ladies’ Harp, 1847 Templi Carmina (Northampton, Massachusetts: 1853) The Juvenile Choir, 1865 --www.hymntime.com/tch

Edward Hamilton

Person Name: E. Hamilton Composer of "TENDERNESS" in Bible School Echoes, and Sacred Hymns

Giovanni Paisiello

Person Name: G. Paisiello Composer of "VIGIL" in The New Laudes Domini

A. Chapin

Composer of "IOWA" in Laudes Domini

Garret Colley Wellesley, Earl of Mornington

1735 - 1781 Person Name: G. W. Mornington Composer of "MORNINGTON" in Gloria Deo Garret Colley Wellesley, Earl of Mornington, father of the Duke of Wellington; b. Dongan, Ireland, 1735; d. there, 1781 Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal, 1908

Mrs. H. C. Boyd

Composer of "[A charge to keep I have]" in The Gospel Trumpeter

Lowell Mason

1792 - 1872 Composer of "BOYLSTON" in The United Methodist Hymnal Dr. Lowell Mason (the degree was conferred by the University of New York) is justly called the father of American church music; and by his labors were founded the germinating principles of national musical intelligence and knowledge, which afforded a soil upon which all higher musical culture has been founded. To him we owe some of our best ideas in religious church music, elementary musical education, music in the schools, the popularization of classical chorus singing, and the art of teaching music upon the Inductive or Pestalozzian plan. More than that, we owe him no small share of the respect which the profession of music enjoys at the present time as contrasted with the contempt in which it was held a century or more ago. In fact, the entire art of music, as now understood and practiced in America, has derived advantage from the work of this great man. Lowell Mason was born in Medfield, Mass., January 8, 1792. From childhood he had manifested an intense love for music, and had devoted all his spare time and effort to improving himself according to such opportunities as were available to him. At the age of twenty he found himself filling a clerkship in a banking house in Savannah, Ga. Here he lost no opportunity of gratifying his passion for musical advancement, and was fortunate to meet for the first time a thoroughly qualified instructor, in the person of F. L. Abel. Applying his spare hours assiduously to the cultivation of the pursuit to which his passion inclined him, he soon acquired a proficiency that enabled him to enter the field of original composition, and his first work of this kind was embodied in the compilation of a collection of church music, which contained many of his own compositions. The manuscript was offered unavailingly to publishers in Philadelphia and in Boston. Fortunately for our musical advancement it finally secured the attention of the Boston Handel and Haydn Society, and by its committee was submitted to Dr. G. K. Jackson, the severest critic in Boston. Dr. Jackson approved most heartily of the work, and added a few of his own compositions to it. Thus enlarged, it was finally published in 1822 as The Handel and Haydn Society Collection of Church Music. Mason's name was omitted from the publication at his own request, which he thus explains, "I was then a bank officer in Savannah, and did not wish to be known as a musical man, as I had not the least thought of ever making music a profession." President Winchester, of the Handel and Haydn Society, sold the copyright for the young man. Mr. Mason went back to Savannah with probably $500 in his pocket as the preliminary result of his Boston visit. The book soon sprang into universal popularity, being at once adopted by the singing schools of New England, and through this means entering into the church choirs, to whom it opened up a higher field of harmonic beauty. Its career of success ran through some seventeen editions. On realizing this success, Mason determined to accept an invitation to come to Boston and enter upon a musical career. This was in 1826. He was made an honorary member of the Handel and Haydn Society, but declined to accept this, and entered the ranks as an active member. He had been invited to come to Boston by President Winchester and other musical friends and was guaranteed an income of $2,000 a year. He was also appointed, by the influence of these friends, director of music at the Hanover, Green, and Park Street churches, to alternate six months with each congregation. Finally he made a permanent arrangement with the Bowdoin Street Church, and gave up the guarantee, but again friendly influence stepped in and procured for him the position of teller at the American Bank. In 1827 Lowell Mason became president and conductor of the Handel and Haydn Society. It was the beginning of a career that was to win for him as has been already stated the title of "The Father of American Church Music." Although this may seem rather a bold claim it is not too much under the circumstances. Mr. Mason might have been in the average ranks of musicianship had he lived in Europe; in America he was well in advance of his surroundings. It was not too high praise (in spite of Mason's very simple style) when Dr. Jackson wrote of his song collection: "It is much the best book I have seen published in this country, and I do not hesitate to give it my most decided approbation," or that the great contrapuntist, Hauptmann, should say the harmonies of the tunes were dignified and churchlike and that the counterpoint was good, plain, singable and melodious. Charles C. Perkins gives a few of the reasons why Lowell Mason was the very man to lead American music as it then existed. He says, "First and foremost, he was not so very much superior to the members as to be unreasonably impatient at their shortcomings. Second, he was a born teacher, who, by hard work, had fitted himself to give instruction in singing. Third, he was one of themselves, a plain, self-made man, who could understand them and be understood of them." The personality of Dr. Mason was of great use to the art and appreciation of music in this country. He was of strong mind, dignified manners, sensitive, yet sweet and engaging. Prof. Horace Mann, one of the great educators of that day, said he would walk fifty miles to see and hear Mr. Mason teach if he could not otherwise have that advantage. Dr. Mason visited a number of the music schools in Europe, studied their methods, and incorporated the best things in his own work. He founded the Boston Academy of Music. The aim of this institution was to reach the masses and introduce music into the public schools. Dr. Mason resided in Boston from 1826 to 1851, when he removed to New York. Not only Boston benefited directly by this enthusiastic teacher's instruction, but he was constantly traveling to other societies in distant cities and helping their work. He had a notable class at North Reading, Mass., and he went in his later years as far as Rochester, where he trained a chorus of five hundred voices, many of them teachers, and some of them coming long distances to study under him. Before 1810 he had developed his idea of "Teachers' Conventions," and, as in these he had representatives from different states, he made musical missionaries for almost the entire country. He left behind him no less than fifty volumes of musical collections, instruction books, and manuals. As a composer of solid, enduring church music. Dr. Mason was one of the most successful this country has introduced. He was a deeply pious man, and was a communicant of the Presbyterian Church. Dr. Mason in 1817 married Miss Abigail Gregory, of Leesborough, Mass. The family consisted of four sons, Daniel Gregory, Lowell, William and Henry. The two former founded the publishing house of Mason Bros., dissolved by the death of the former in 1869. Lowell and Henry were the founders of the great organ manufacturer of Mason & Hamlin. Dr. William Mason was one of the most eminent musicians that America has yet produced. Dr. Lowell Mason died at "Silverspring," a beautiful residence on the side of Orange Mountain, New Jersey, August 11, 1872, bequeathing his great musical library, much of which had been collected abroad, to Yale College. --Hall, J. H. (c1914). Biography of Gospel Song and Hymn Writers. New York: Fleming H. Revell Company.

William B. Bradbury

1816 - 1868 Composer of "WOODWORTH" in The African Methodist Episcopal Hymn and Tune Book William Bachelder Bradbury USA 1816-1868. Born at York, ME, he was raised on his father's farm, with rainy days spent in a shoe-shop, the custom in those days. He loved music and spent spare hours practicing any music he could find. In 1830 the family moved to Boston, where he first saw and heard an organ and piano, and other instruments. He became an organist at 15. He attended Dr. Lowell Mason's singing classes, and later sang in the Bowdoin Street church choir. Dr. Mason became a good friend. He made $100/yr playing the organ, and was still in Dr. Mason's choir. Dr. Mason gave him a chance to teach singing in Machias, ME, which he accepted. He returned to Boston the following year to marry Adra Esther Fessenden in 1838, then relocated to Saint John, New Brunswick. Where his efforts were not much appreciated, so he returned to Boston. He was offered charge of music and organ at the First Baptist Church of Brooklyn. That led to similar work at the Baptist Tabernacle, New York City, where he also started a singing class. That started singing schools in various parts of the city, and eventually resulted in music festivals, held at the Broadway Tabernacle, a prominent city event. He conducted a 1000 children choir there, which resulted in music being taught as regular study in public schools of the city. He began writing music and publishing it. In 1847 he went with his wife to Europe to study with some of the music masters in London and also Germany. He attended Mendelssohn funeral while there. He went to Switzerland before returning to the states, and upon returning, commenced teaching, conducting conventions, composing, and editing music books. In 1851, with his brother, Edward, he began manufacturring Bradbury pianos, which became popular. Also, he had a small office in one of his warehouses in New York and often went there to spend time in private devotions. As a professor, he edited 59 books of sacred and secular music, much of which he wrote. He attended the Presbyterian church in Bloomfield, NJ, for many years later in life. He contracted tuberculosis the last two years of his life. John Perry

Johann Sebastian Bach

1685 - 1750 Person Name: J. S. Bach Composer of "AUGUSTINE" in The Y.M.C.A. Hymnal Johann Sebastian Bach was born at Eisenach into a musical family and in a town steeped in Reformation history, he received early musical training from his father and older brother, and elementary education in the classical school Luther had earlier attended. Throughout his life he made extraordinary efforts to learn from other musicians. At 15 he walked to Lüneburg to work as a chorister and study at the convent school of St. Michael. From there he walked 30 miles to Hamburg to hear Johann Reinken, and 60 miles to Celle to become familiar with French composition and performance traditions. Once he obtained a month's leave from his job to hear Buxtehude, but stayed nearly four months. He arranged compositions from Vivaldi and other Italian masters. His own compositions spanned almost every musical form then known (Opera was the notable exception). In his own time, Bach was highly regarded as organist and teacher, his compositions being circulated as models of contrapuntal technique. Four of his children achieved careers as composers; Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, and Chopin are only a few of the best known of the musicians that confessed a major debt to Bach's work in their own musical development. Mendelssohn began re-introducing Bach's music into the concert repertoire, where it has come to attract admiration and even veneration for its own sake. After 20 years of successful work in several posts, Bach became cantor of the Thomas-schule in Leipzig, and remained there for the remaining 27 years of his life, concentrating on church music for the Lutheran service: over 200 cantatas, four passion settings, a Mass, and hundreds of chorale settings, harmonizations, preludes, and arrangements. He edited the tunes for Schemelli's Musicalisches Gesangbuch, contributing 16 original tunes. His choral harmonizations remain a staple for studies of composition and harmony. Additional melodies from his works have been adapted as hymn tunes. --John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

Samuel Sebastian Wesley

1810 - 1876 Person Name: Samuel Sebastian Wesley, 1810-1876 Harmonizer of "CAMBRIDGE (Harrison)" in Singing the Faith Samuel Sebastian Wesley (b. London, England, 1810; d. Gloucester, England, 1876) was an English organist and composer. The grandson of Charles Wesley, he was born in London, and sang in the choir of the Chapel Royal as a boy. He learned composition and organ from his father, Samuel, completed a doctorate in music at Oxford, and composed for piano, organ, and choir. He was organist at Hereford Cathedral (1832-1835), Exeter Cathedral (1835-1842), Leeds Parish Church (1842-1849), Winchester Cathedral (1849-1865), and Gloucester Cathedral (1865-1876). Wesley strove to improve the standards of church music and the status of church musicians; his observations and plans for reform were published as A Few Words on Cathedral Music and the Music System of the Church (1849). He was the musical editor of Charles Kemble's A Selection of Psalms and Hymns (1864) and of the Wellburn Appendix of Original Hymns and Tunes (1875) but is best known as the compiler of The European Psalmist (1872), in which some 130 of the 733 hymn tunes were written by him. Bert Polman

R. E. Hudson

1843 - 1901 Composer of "[A charge to keep I have]" in Songs of Peace, Love and Joy Ralph Hudson (1843-1901) was born in Napoleon, OH. He served in the Union Army in the Civil War. After teaching for five years at Mt. Union College in Alliance he established his own publishing company in that city. He was a strong prohibitionist and published The Temperance Songster in 1886. He compiled several other collections and supplied tunes for gospel songs, among them Clara Tear Williams' "All my life long I had panted" (Satisfied). See 101 More Hymn Stories, K. Osbeck, Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1985). Mary Louise VanDyke

William Henry Monk

1823 - 1889 Person Name: William H. Monk Composer of "ST. ETHELWALD" in Common Service Book of the Lutheran Church William H. Monk (b. Brompton, London, England, 1823; d. London, 1889) is best known for his music editing of Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861, 1868; 1875, and 1889 editions). He also adapted music from plainsong and added accompaniments for Introits for Use Throughout the Year, a book issued with that famous hymnal. Beginning in his teenage years, Monk held a number of musical positions. He became choirmaster at King's College in London in 1847 and was organist and choirmaster at St. Matthias, Stoke Newington, from 1852 to 1889, where he was influenced by the Oxford Movement. At St. Matthias, Monk also began daily choral services with the choir leading the congregation in music chosen according to the church year, including psalms chanted to plainsong. He composed over fifty hymn tunes and edited The Scottish Hymnal (1872 edition) and Wordsworth's Hymns for the Holy Year (1862) as well as the periodical Parish Choir (1840-1851). Bert Polman

Edward Miller

1735 - 1807 Person Name: Edward Miller, 1735-1807 Composer of "GALWAY" in The Book of Praise Edward Miller, Born in the United Kingdom. The son of a pavior (stone paver), Miller left home to study music at King's Lynn. He was a flautist in Handel's orchestra. In 1752 he published “Six Solos for the German Flute”. In 1756 he was appointed organist of St. George Minster Doncaster, continuing in that post for 50 years. He also gave pianoforte lessons. He published hymns and sonatas for harpsichord, 16 editions of “The Institues of Music”, “Elegies for Voice & Pianoforte”, and Psalms of David set to music, arranged for each Sunday of the year. That work had over 5000 subscribers. He published his thoughts on performance of Psalmody in the Church of England, addressed to clergy. In 1801 he published the Psalms of Watts and Wesley for use by Methodists, and in 1804 the history and antiques of Doncaster with a map. John Perry

James M. Black

1856 - 1938 Composer of "[A charge to keep I have]" in Songs of the Soul No. 2 James Milton Black USA 1856-1938 Born in South Hill, NY, Black was an American hymn composer, choir leader and Sunday school teacher. He worked, lived,and died in Williamsport, PA. An active member, he worked at the Pine Tree Methodist Episcopal Church there. He married Lucy Love Levan. He started his music career with John Howard of New York and Daniel B. Towner of the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. He edited a dozen gospel song books and wrote nearly 1500 songs. He also served on the commission for the 1905 Methodist Hymnal. John Perry

S. J. Vail

1818 - 1883 Person Name: S. J. V. Composer of "WILLIMANTIC" in The Standard Church Hymnal In his youth Silas Jones Vail learned the hatter's trade at Danbury, Ct. While still a young man, he went to New York and took employment in the fashionable hat store of William H. Beebe. Later he established himself in business as a hatter at 118 Fulton Street, where he was for many years successful. But the conditions of trade changed, and he could not change with them. After his failure in 1869 or 1870 he devoted his entire time and attention to music. He was the writer of much popular music for use in churches and Sunday schools. Pieces of music entitled "Scatter Seeds of Kindness," "Gates Ajar," "Close to Thee," "We Shall Sleep, but not Forever," and "Nothing but Leaves" were known to all church attendants twenty years ago. Fanny Crosby, the blind authoress, wrote expressly for him many of the verses he set to music. --Vail, Henry H. (Henry Hobart). Genealogy of some of the Vail family descended from Jeremiah Vail at Salem, Mass., 1639, p. 234.

Robert Schumann

1810 - 1856 Person Name: R. Schumann Composer of "HEATH" in The Church Hymnal Robert Alexander Schumann DM Germany 1810-1856. Born at Swickau, Saxony, Germany, the last child of a novelist, bookseller, and publisher, he began composing music at age seven. He received general music instruction at the local high school and worked to create his own compositions. Some of his works were considered admirable for his age. He even composed music congruent to the personalities of friends, who took note of the anomaly. He studied famous poets and philosophers and was impressed with the works of other famous composers of the time. After his father’s death in 1826, he went to Leipzig to study law (to meet the terms of his inheritance). In 1829 he continued law studies in Heidelberg, where he became a lifelong member of Corps Saxo-Borussia Heidelberg. In 1830 he left the study of law to return to music, intending to pursue a career as a virtuoso pianist. His teacher, Friedrich Wieck, assured him he could become the finest pianist in Europe, but an injury to his right hand (from a practicing method) ended that dream. He then focused his energies on composition, and studied under Heinrich Dorn, a German composer and conductor of the Leipzig opera. Schumann visited relatives in Zwickau and Schneeberg and performed at a concert given by Clara Wieck, age 13 at the time. In 1834 he published ‘A new journal for music’, praising some past composers and deriding others. He met Felix Mendelssohn at Wieck’s house in Leigzig and lauded the greatness of his compositions, along with those of Johannes Brahms. He also wrote a work, hoping to use proceeds from its sale towards a monument for Beethoven, whom he highly admired. He composed symphonies, operas, orchestral and chamber works, and also wrote biographies. Until 1840 he wrote strictly for piano, but then began composing for orchestra and voice. That year he composed 168 songs. He also receive a Doctorate degree from the University of Jena that year. An aesthete and influential music critic, he was one of the most regarded composers of the Romantic era. He published his works in the ‘New journal for music’, which he co-founded. In 1840, against the wishes of his father, he married Clara Wieck, daughter of his former teacher, and they had four children: Marie, Julie, Eugenie, and Felix. Clara also composed music and had a considerable concert career, the earnings from which formed a substantial part of her father’s fortune. In 1841 he wrote 2 of his 4 symphonies. In 1843 he was awarded a professorship in the Conservatory of Music, which Mendelssohn had founded in Leipzig that same year, When he and Clara went to Russia for her performances, he was questioned as to whether he also was a musician. He harbored resentment for her success as a pianist, which exceeded his ability as a pianist and reputation as a composer. From 1844-1853 he was engaged in setting Goethe’s Faust to music, but he began having persistent nervous prostration and developed neurasthenia (nervous fears of things, like metal objects and drugs). In 1846 he felt he had recovered and began traveling to Vienna, Prague, and Berlin, where he was received with enthusiasm. His only opera was written in 1848, and an orchestral work in 1849. In 1850 he succeeded Ferdinand Hiller as musical director at Dusseldorf, but was a poor conductor and soon aroused the opposition of the musicians, claiming he was impossible on the platform. From 1850-1854 he composed a wide variety of genres, but critics have considered his works during this period inferior to earlier works. In 1851 he visited Switzerland, Belgium, and returned to Leipzig. That year he finished his fourth symphony. He then went to Dusseldorf and began editing his complete works and making an anthology on the subject of music. He again was plagued with imaginary voices (angels, ghosts or demons) and in 1854 jumped off a bridge into the Rhine River, but was rescued by boatmen and taken home. For the last two years of his life, after the attempted suicide, Schumann was confined to a sanitarium in Endenich near Bonn, at his own request, and his wife was not allowed to see him. She finally saw him two days before he died, but he was unable to speak. He was diagnosed with psychotic melancholia, but died of pneumonia without recovering from the mental illness. Speculations as to the cause of his late term maladies was that he may have suffered from syphilis, contracted early in life, and treated with mercury, unknown as a neurological poison at the time. A report on his autopsy said he had a tumor at the base of the brain. It is also surmised he may have had bipolar disorder, accounting for mood swings and changes in his productivity. From the time of his death Clara devoted herself to the performance and interpretation of her husband’s works. John Perry

A. Williams

1731 - 1776 Person Name: Aaron Williams Composer of "ST. THOMAS" in The Hymnal Aaron Williams (b. London, England, 1731; d. London, 1776) was a singing teacher, music engraver, and clerk at the Scottish Church, London Wall. He published various church music collections, some intended for rural church choirs. Representative of his compilations are The Universal Psalmodist (1763)— published in the United States as The American Harmony (1769)—The Royal Harmony (1766), The New Universal Psalmodist (1770), and Psalmody in Miniature (1778). His Harmonia Coelestis (1775) included anthems by noted composers. Bert Polman

H. W. Greatorex

1813 - 1858 Person Name: Henry W. Greatorex Composer of "LEIGHTON" in The Smaller Hymnal Henry Wellington Greatorex United Kingdom 1813-1858. Born at Burton upon Trent, England, he received a thorough musical education from his father, Thomas Greatorex, who was for many years organist of Westminster Abbey, and conductor of the London concerts of ancient music. Henry became a composer, author, compiler, editor, and arranger of music. He emigrated to the U.S. In 1839. In 1849 he married artist Eliza Pratt, and they had four children: Elizabeth, Kathleen, Thomas, and Francis Henry. Prior to settling in New York City as a music teacher and organist at Calvary Church, he played at churches in Hartford, CT, including Center Church and St Johns Episcopal Church in West Hartford, CT. He frequently sang in oratorios and concerts. For some years he was also organist and conductor of the choir at St. Paul's Chapel. In 1853 he was an organist at St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Charleston, SC. He did much to advance the standard of sacred music in the U.S. In days when country singing school teachers imposed more rudimentary melodies on hymn books. He published a collection of “Psalm & hymn tunes, chants, anthems & sentences” (Boston 1851). He died of yellow fever in Charleston, SC. John Perry

Jeremiah Ingalls

1764 - 1838 Composer of "KENTUCKY" in The Wesleyan Methodist Hymnal Jeremiah Ingalls USA 1764-1838. Born at Andover, MA, his father died of hardships from the American Revolutionary War when he was thirteen. In VT, he worked as a farmer, Cooper, Taverner, and choirmaster. He mastered the bass viol (similar to a cello) and became a composer. He moved to Newbury, VT, in 1787, and in 1791 he married Mary (Polly) Bigelow of Westminster, MA, and they had eleven children (nine living to adulthood): Smith, Jeremiah, Joshua, Jeremiah, Mary, Moses, Elizabeth, John, Almyra, Isaac, and Hannah. He taught singing and began leading the singing at the First Congregational Church there. The choir became well-known, and people came from miles around to hear them sing. In 1800 he built and operated a tavern. He also worked as a cooper. In 1803 he became a deacon, and in 1805 he published a song book, “Christian Harmony”, that contained folk and popular songs with tunes used in spiritual songs sung in early religious revivals and campmeetings, some becoming hymns in later song books. It was said that at times he would be so immersed in his music that his livelihood suffered as a result. He was removed and excommunicated from his church in 1810, having a falling out with the church due to marriage infidelity that he refused to repent of. He ran his tavern for a number of years, but finally sold it and moved to Rochester, VT, in 1819, where he became the first choirmaster of the Church of Christ. His tenure there was successful, and he was a signer of the document establishing construction of the first church building in Rochester (1812). Later, his son, John, succeeded him as choirmaster there. the family’s last move was to a farm near Hancock, VT. He was described as short, portly, good-humored, and absentminded, and having a high voice, but singing bass well. His family was musical, some noted for their musical abilities. A singing society in VT was named for him and promoted singing events. Some of his music became well-known around the world. He died at Hancock, VT. Note: It is said that he wrote a letter to the First Congregational Church in Westminster 18 years after departing repenting of his infidelity (allegedly after his illegitimate son, Thomas, was of age, but the letter was lost in church records, although the church said they had received it. John Perry

Robert Jackson

1840 - 1914 Person Name: Robert Jackson, 1842-1914 Composer of "TRENTHAM" in His Fullness Songs After receiving his musical training at the Royal Academy of Music, Robert Jackson (b, Oldham, Lancashire, England, 1840; d. Oldham, 1914) worked briefly as organist at St. Mark's Church, Grosvenor Square, in London. But he spent most of his life as organist at St. Peter's Church in Oldham (1868-1914), where his father had previously been organist for forty-eight years. A composer of hymn tunes, Jackson was also the conductor of the Oldham Music Society and Werneth Vocal Society. Bert Polman

Federico J. Pagura

1923 - 2016 Person Name: Federico J. Pagura, 1923-2016 Translator of "A Charge to Keep I Have (Yo tengo una misión)" in Santo, Santo, Santo Federico José Pagura was an Argentine Methodist bishop and author and translator of hymns. Leland Bryant Ross

John Wesley

1703 - 1791 Person Name: J. Wesley Author of "A charge to keep I have" in Worship in Song John Wesley, the son of Samuel, and brother of Charles Wesley, was born at Epworth, June 17, 1703. He was educated at the Charterhouse, London, and at Christ Church, Oxford. He became a Fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford, and graduated M.A. in 1726. At Oxford, he was one of the small band consisting of George Whitefield, Hames Hervey, Charles Wesley, and a few others, who were even then known for their piety; they were deridingly called "Methodists." After his ordination he went, in 1735, on a mission to Georgia. The mission was not successful, and he returned to England in 1738. From that time, his life was one of great labour, preaching the Gospel, and publishing his commentaries and other theological works. He died in London, in 1791, in his eighty-eighth year. His prose works are very numerous, but he did not write many useful hymns. It is to him, however, and not to his brother Charles, that we are indebted for the translations from the German. --Annotations of the Hymnal, Charles Hutchins, M.A., 1872 ====================== John Wesley, M.A., was born at Epworth Rectory in 1703, and, like the rest of the family, received his early education from his mother. He narrowly escaped perishing in the fire which destroyed the rectory house in 1709, and his deliverance made a life-long impression upon him. In 1714 he was nominated on the foundation of Charterhouse by his father's patron, the Duke of Buckingham, and remained at that school until 1720, when he went up, with a scholarship, from Charterhouse to Christ Church, Oxford. Having taken his degree, he received Holy Orders from the Bishop of Oxford (Dr. Potter) in 1725. In 1726 he was elected Fellow of Lincoln College, and remained at Oxford until 1727, when he returned into Lincolnshire to assist his father as curate at Epworth and Wroot. In 1729 he was summoned back to Oxford by his firm friend, Dr. Morley, Rector of Lincoln, to assist in the College tuition. There he found already established the little band of "Oxford Methodists" who immediately placed themselves under his direction. In 1735 he went, as a Missionary of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, to Georgia, where a new colony had been founded under the governorship of General Oglethorpe. On his voyage out he was deeply impressed with the piety and Christian courage of some German fellow travellers, Moravians. During his short ministry in Georgia he met with many discouragements, and returned home saddened and dissatisfied both with himself and his work; but in London he again fell in with the Moravians, especially with Peter Bohler; and one memorable night (May 24, 1738) he went to a meeting in Aldersgate Street, where some one was reading Luther's preface to the Epistle to the Romans. There, "About a quarter before nine, while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone, for salvation; and an assurance was given me, that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death." From that moment his future course was sealed; and for more than half a century he laboured, through evil report and good report, to spread what he believed to be the everlasting Gospel, travelling more miles, preaching more sermons, publishing more books of a practical sort, and making more converts than any man of his day, or perhaps of any day, and dying at last, March 2, 1791, in harness, at the patriarchal age of 88. The popular conception of the division of labour between the two brothers in the Revival, is that John was the preacher, and Charles the hymnwriter. But this is not strictly accurate. On the one hand Charles was also a great preacher, second only to his brother and George Whitefield in the effects which he produced. On the other hand, John by no means relegated to Charles the exclusive task of supplying the people with their hymns. John Wesley was not the sort of man to depute any part of his work entirely to another: and this part was, in his opinion, one of vital importance. With that wonderful instinct for gauging the popular mind, which was one element in his success, he saw at once that hymns might be utilized, not only for raising the devotion, but also for instructing, and establishing the faith of his disciples. He intended the hymns to be not merely a constituent part of public worship, but also a kind of creed in verse. They were to be "a body of experimental and practical divinity." "In what other publication," he asks in his Preface to the Wesleyan Hymn Book, 1780 (Preface, Oct. 20,1779), "have you so distinct and full an account of Scriptural Christianity; such a declaration of the heights and depths of religion, speculative and practical; so strong cautions against the most plausible errors, particularly those now most prevalent; and so clear directions for making your calling and election sure; for perfecting holiness in the fear of God?" The part which he actually took in writing the hymns, it is not easy to ascertain; but it is certain that more than thirty translations from the German, French and Spanish (chiefly from the German) were exclusively his; and there are some original hymns, admittedly his composition, which are not unworthy to stand by the side of his brother's. His translations from the German especially have had a wide circulation. Although somewhat free as translations they embody the fire and energy of the originals. It has been the common practice, however for a hundred years or more to ascribe all translations from the German to John Wesley, as he only of the two brothers knew that language; and to assign to Charles Wesley all the original hymns except such as are traceable to John Wesley through his Journals and other works. The list of 482 original hymns by John and Charles Wesley listed in this Dictionary of Hymnology have formed an important part of Methodist hymnody and show the enormous influence of the Wesleys on the English hymnody of the nineteenth century. -- Excerpts from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907) =================== See also in: Hymn Writers of the Church

Stanley

1767 - 1822 Person Name: S. Stanley Composer of "SHIRLAND" in The Church Hymnal Samuel J. Stanley

Aaron Chapin

b. 1768 Composer of "KENTUCKY" in The National Hymn Book of the American Churches

James Nares

1715 - 1783 Composer of "AYNHOE" in The Harvard University Hymn Book Born: April 19, 1715, Stanwell, Middlesex, England. Died: February 10, 1783. Buried: St. Margaret’s, Westminster, England. After his family moved to Oxford, Nares became a chorister in the Chapel Royal. He later became deputy organist at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor; organist in York Cathedral (1734); and organist in the Royal Chapel and composer to the king (1756). He received a doctorate of music degree from Cambridge University in 1756. In 1770, the Catch Club awarded him a prize for his glee To All Lovers of Harmony. Sources: Frost, p. 683 Nutter, p. 462 http://www.hymntime.com/tch/bio/n/a/r/nares_j.htm ==================== http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Nares

William Jensen Reynolds

1920 - 2009 Person Name: William J. Reynolds Composer of "KEEGAN" in Christian Praise Pseudonyms include: Bigelow, James Buie, Dean Clark, John Day, Francis Dorff, Gregory Dorsey, Jane Drakestone, John East, Richard Eastis, Ellen Frye, Dan Gregory, Peter Harrold, Stan Hawk, John Horn, Ellen Ingham, Marie Jordaan, Jacques Keely, Grant Kije, Cyd Kringel, Cark Kuliami, Tiki [?] Lee, Wilbur Long, Richard Long, Robert MacDougall, Thom Madsen, Carl O. Monroe, Lou Munroe, June Reed, Ruth Rodgers, Lee Rosemont, David Ross, Don Saul, J. Crawford Sneed, Roger Wheeler, Annette Winston, Clyde York, Henry --Email from William Colson to Mary Louise VanDyke, 4 May 2005, DNAH Archives. Names taken from the program of Reynolds' retirement dinner. Colson notes, "The program has faded and the one designated with a question mark is not 100% certain."

Ralph Harrison

1748 - 1810 Composer of "CAMBRIDGE" in Small Church Music

A. Brooks Everett

1828 - 1875 Person Name: A. B. Everett Composer of "RICHMOND" in Hymn and Tune Book of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (Round Note Ed.) Asa Brooks Everett MusDoc USA 1828-1875. Born in VA, he planned to be a doctor, but decided to study music instead. He studied in Boston for four years and also in Leipzig, Germany for four years.. He composed many gospel tunes and edited “The Sceptre” a New York publication. His brothers, Benjamin and Leonard, were also composers. He and Leonard organized a musical instruction system in Richmond, VA, in the 1850s. By 1861, 50 teachers and singing schools were representing them and using their publications. He died in Nashville, TN. John Perry

Jonathan C. Woodman

1813 - 1894 Composer of "STATE STREET" in The Pilgrim Hymnal

Richard P. Howard

b. 1929 Person Name: Richard Howard, 1929- Author (st. 3) of "A Charge to Keep I Have" in Community of Christ Sings

J. H. Kurzenknabe

1840 - 1927 Author of "Lord, let my grace abound" in Song Treasury Kurzenknabe, John Henry. (Muenchhof, Kurhessen, Germany, June 18, 1840--April 13, 1927, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania). German Reformed layman. His parents died of cholera when he was five, and he was placed in a boarding school. When 14, he came to the United States with his violin and his share ($500) of his parents' estate. During the 48-day voyage, he attended an elderly sick woman, a Mrs. Ziegler from Wilkes-Barre, Penn., whose family helped him settled in the States. He attended Wyoming Seminary nearby, where he studied music and perfected his English. Even before graduation, he taught violin and began teaching singing classes in the area. In 1856, William B. Bradbury came to Wilkes-Barre for a six-week musical institute. He was so impressed with Kurzenknabe's talent that he offered him, still only 16 years old, $50 a month and board to accompany him to other institutes as an assistant teacher. Two years later, Kurzenknabe was teaching a class in Hagerstown, Maryland. At the final concert, one of the soloists became ill and a 14-year-old girl, Susan Shaffer, filled the role so well they eloped to Greencastle, Penn., and were married on November 13, 1859. They had 15 children, moving every few years until 1869 when they settled permanently in Harrisburg. J.H. (as he preferred to be called) tried to enlist in the Union Army during the Civil War, but was rejected because of his flat feet. He became a U.S. citizen on November 2, 1866. He opened the first piano story in Harrisburg. He continued to teach singing classes, published his many song-books under the imprint J.H. Kurzenknabe & Sons, organized a band and an orchestra, and was an early and active member of the Board of Trade. Long active in the local German Reformed Church, as the city expanded he organized St. John's Sunday School in 1893 which became St. John's Chapel in 1899 at Fourth and Maclay Streets. This has kept growing so that the present church buildings include Kurzenknabe Auditorium. As president of the Pennsylvania State Music Teachers' Association, he presided over their convention in Harrisburg, December 26-28, 1894. For the occasion, he prepared a concert with 300 voices and orchestra which was conducted by W.W. Gilchrist of Philadelphia. From this grew the Harrisburg Choral Society. That same year, he became the local examiner for the London (England) College of Music. He wrote the words and/or the music to over 650 hymns. His song-books went through several editions, selling a total of over 300,000 copies. In 1904, with his daughter Lily he made an extended trip back to his native Germany. On his 50th wedding anniversary, the wedding march was played by six sons and a daughter. His wife died on March 24, 1920, at the age of 75. He followed her at the age of 86. --Information furnished by great-grandson, John G. Kurzenknabe. Additional essays are available in the DNAH Archives. =============================== Born: June 18, 1840, Mönchdorf, Kurhessen, Germany. Buried: East Harrisburg Cemetery, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Kurzenknabe, J. H., music teacher and author, was born in Moenchehof, near Cassel, Curhessen, Germany, Jun 18, 1840. He is a son of John George and Anna Kurzenknabe. He was left an orphan in childhood. He attended the Industrial School at Cassel. When he was fourteen years old he bade farewell to friends and home, September 15, 1854, and set out to seek his fortune in the New World, sailing from Bremerhaven for America on the following day. By mistake he was transferred to a ship on which all were strangers to him, but he was buoyant with hope and free as a bird. During the voyage of forty-nine days, being a very clever violinist, he made friends among the officers and crew and became also a general favorite with the passengers, so that he was the pet of the ship. His especial attention was attracted to an old lady who was sick during the whole voyage. Her children in America had sent money to bring over their old mother. To this helpless woman he ministered in his boyish way as best he could. The forty-nine days' voyage was tempestuous, and minus mast, and storm-beaten, the ship hove in sight of the eagerly looked-for land. On her arrival at New York, the children of the old lady were there to meet her, to whom she told the story of the boy's kindness. In this family he found a temporary home, and in years to come he was not forgotten by them. Arrangements were made for him to go to a seminary in Pennsylvania, where under Christian training he found a safe shelter and valuable instruction. Having a talent for music he followed this bent, and in that institution of learning he prosecuted his musical studies and made for himself a name as a teacher of the violin and vocal music. He was afterwards placed under the care and instruction of William B. Bradbury, then the most prominent teacher of music in the country. After a thorough course under this master, Mr. Kurzenknabe started on his own responsibility. His first and only attempt to teach singing and a day-school together in a Maryland town was a total failure, but the very next engagement, which was at Sag Harbor, L. I., proved a complete success. After teaching successfully in Baltimore and other Maryland towns, he visited the New England States and taught conventions in a number of important cities. He then returned to Hagerstown, Md., where his lot fell in pleasant places, and here, too, he found the wife to cheer him through his busy life. He taught successfully in Baltimore, York, Pa., Harrisburg, Philadelphia and New York, and last in Camden, N. J., where the first child, a boy, greeted the parents and cheered their hearts. His next place of residence and teaching was Moorestown, N. J., and the next Philadelphia, where a daughter was born. The war coming on, the New England States seemed safer than Pennsylvania, hence Dedham, Mass., became the next home. Fine classes in Yankee land, war songs and teaching in most of the prominent town brought money to the purse, but sickness claimed the boy for a victim. Repeated and urgent invitations from Maryland friends to make a change, for the boy's sake, induced the Kurzenknabes to disregard the threatening perils of war and journey southward. Antietam and Gettysburg brought the armies of both sides, and the great invasion left the family destitute and helpless, with but five dollars in money and a railroad ticket to Sunbury, Pa., whence the floods drove them back. Mercersburg and study for the ministry were quickly decided upon. But exciting debates of the church involved theological gladiators and their followers, and too free a tongue was not the wisest thing to have in those days of trial. Fairy visions vanished. The advent of twin boys made an increase of income imperative and teaching was the only resource. A house was purchased at McConnelsburg, but sold after an occupancy of two years. Mechanicsburg was home for a short time, and finally Harrisburg became the permanent residence, and a house was purchased which is still home. Teaching for twenty-seven years in many different States, sometimes hundreds of miles from home, always joyous, looking at the bright side of life, active, with plenty of grit, yet with his heart centered where the loved ones stay, earnest, enthusiastic, this is J. H. Kurzenknabe as his friends and scholars know him. Professor Kurzenknabe is the author and compiler of the following books: "Sweet Silver Echoes," "Music at Sight," "Gospel Trio," "Songs and Glees," "Wreath of Gems," "Song Treasury," "Peerless Praise," "Gates Ajar," "Sowing and Reaping," " Theory of Music," "Fair as the Morning," and "Kindly Light." The sale of "Sowing and Reaping" has rached over 280,000 copies, and over 190,000 copies of "Fair as the Morning" have been sold. "Kindly Light" starts in with 20,000 copies engaged in advance of publication. All of htese books are published by his well-known house of J. H. Kurzenknabe & Sons, Harrisburg, Pa. Mr. Kurzenknabe was married in Greencastle, Pa., November 13, 1859, to Susan Shafer, daughter of George and Frederica Shafer, residents of Hagerstown, Md. Professor Kurzenknabe is at present a member of Salem Reformed church, which, as elder, he represented for many years at Classis and in the Synod. He belongs to Peace and Plenty Lodge, No. 69, I. O. O. F., Harrisburg Encampment, No. 301, the I. O. of H., and several other organizations. He is often for weeks from home, attending conventions, gospel services and children's gatherings. He eats and sleeps well, is in perfect health, is five feet nine inches in height, turning the scale at two hundred pounds, and knowing nothing by experience of sickness. You will find him a hale-fellow-well-met. May his days of usefulness be many and his talent ever be active in the Master's cause, till the welcome summons, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant," calls him to the rest that awaits the people of God. This sketch is prepared by one of his loyal friends and ardent admirers. http://maley.net/transcription/sketches/kurzenknabe_j_h

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